As the weeks pass by and campaign season draws closer I have noticed the amount of campaign rhetoric has grown thicker. The latest mumbling I have read is about the erosion of community in Bayonne; the strength of the community is something I believe in and is a subject which I agree needs to be addresses, so when a candidate raises this issue it immediately catches my attention. In reading these pieces several good points are raised but no solid solutions are presented, which to me makes it all campaign rhetoric.

The community of Bayonne is one that is very diverse, consisting of both young and old, and many different ethnicities and religious faiths. When a natural disaster strikes or a death in the community happens I have noticed the majority of the community tends to put aside their differences for the better of the community during trying times. My view of the community of Bayonne is that while it is not perfect it is not as far bad off as people claim it to be. You can complain all you want, and offer no solution in the meantime, but in this day and age of technological advances there will never be the sense of community there once was. However, I do have an idea that if elected to be your First Ward Council representative I would like to make a reality. The youth of our city is a group I would like to engage and get more involved in the city’s doings. Bayonne is approaching a time where our future is in the hands of the upcoming generation. As First Ward Councilman I would like to meet individuals from every single district in the First Ward. Upon meeting these individuals I would like to pick one or two from each district and designate them as district leaders. These district leaders would meet with me at least once a month and would serve as liasons between myself and their respective districts. What I would like these district leaders to do is to relay any problems residents of that district may have to me. Other things I would like these district leaders to do are to organize park/street cleanups and other similar projects that would help have a positive impact on the community of the First Ward.

In conclusion I would like to respectfully address Tracy Sanders. Towards the end of her letter she stated that all municipal workers do have to live in the Bayonne. Upon initial glance one might think this is true, but when taking a further look it is found that uniformed personnel are required to live in the municipality at the time of taking the test but after the initial probation period are allowed to move out of Bayonne; teachers are not required to live in Bayonne. One of the biggest issues of voters in Bayonne is the cost of property taxes and the quality of life that does not equate to what the taxpayers pay. Municipal workers are paid by our city taxes. When that money leaves our municipality our already subpar quality of life is further negatively affected and cannot be improved.